


Early Autumn

by heirofhavilliard



Category: A Court of Thorns and Roses Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Elucien - Freeform, F/M, Fluff, Prompt Fic, Pumpkins, elain x lucien - Freeform, post acomaf
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-11
Updated: 2016-10-11
Packaged: 2018-08-21 23:23:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,475
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8264264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heirofhavilliard/pseuds/heirofhavilliard
Summary: Prompt fic for Elucien week: Date Night!Takes place in the Autumn Court and Lucien's awful father and brothers are not there because I don't have time for drama.
Elain had admitted to him that she’d never carved a pumpkin before in her life and he was eager to remedy that. Especially when he saw the way she marveled over the multitude of carved creations that adorned the court this time of year.





	

Lucien smiled when Elain emerged from her room wearing a beautiful long-sleeved gown. “You look beautiful. But I think that you may want to put on something different for this.”

Her cheeks flushed and she looked down at herself. “Like what?” She let him tug her back inside their bedroom and to her wardrobe, watching him as he rifled through her drawers. Her brows were drawn together when he unearthed a pair of worn pants and a plain shirt. “I didn’t know that date night meant we were gardening.”

That impish grin lit up his face in a way that made Elain’s heart skip a beat and she returned the smile. Since they’d come to the Autumn Court he had been a bit on edge, but now he was radiating excitement. She took the clothes from him and waited for him to step outside before changing out of her dress. The lacy, delicate underwear that she had worn for later seemed silly to wear under her work clothes, but she wore them nonetheless.

“You look beautiful,” Lucien purred yet again when she reemerged. He grinned and kissed her cheek before taking her hand and leading her towards the kitchen. “Now if you get any guts on you it won’t be so bad.”

“Guts?” Elain made a face. She had never seen Lucien like this and it was strange, how gleeful he was. The kitchen was huge and warm, the scent of baked apples and cinnamon and sugar hanging thick in the air. In the center of it all was a butcher block covered with a sheet, and on top of it sat two pumpkins. She grinned, suddenly understanding the need for her clothes. “We’re carving pumpkins!” She let go of his hand and grabbed the bigger pumpkin of the two. “I want this one.”

“Are you sure? It has warts,” he raised his brows and grabbed the smaller, less blemished pumpkin, grinning at the way she turned hers this way and that. Elain had admitted to him that she’d never carved a pumpkin before in her life and he was eager to remedy that. Especially when he saw the way she marveled over the multitude of carved creations that adorned the court this time of year. He pulled up a stool for her to sit on and handed her a knife. “You want to make the lid big enough to fit your hand in so you can clean it, but not so big that the top falls through.” Their bond was fluttering like hummingbird wings and it was enough to make him want to chuckle. He picked up a pen and drew the perfect circle around the stem for her to follow with her knife. “Then once it’s cleaned, you can draw whatever you want to carve into it and have at it.” He swallowed when she looked up at him, her eyes bright, and leaned down to kiss her lips tenderly. “Is this okay? If you wanted to go dancing instead--”

Elain silenced him with another kiss, gently pinching his chin between her thumb and finger. “Is there anything to eat?” She gave his nose an affectionate brush with her own; the color in her cheeks was enough to make him ache. She let him go and picked up the knife, carefully beginning to cut into her pumpkin. 

A rush of heat washed over Lucien when he opened the stove. He pulled out the tray of roasted pumpkin seeds, unable to resist immediately popping one into his mouth. His eyes watered and his tongue was screaming at him for being so impatient, but the sweetness from the sugar and cinnamon and nutmeg was worth it. When he turned back to Elain, she was tugging the top off of her pumpkin, her brows crinkled in concentration. Her face scrunched when she looked inside and then at him.

“Guts,” she grinned.

He laughed and brought the tray of seeds to the table, setting them down and then going to stand behind his mate. He made quick work of braiding her hair, securing it with a cord and planting a kiss on the top of her head. “Do you want a pair of gloves, pea? It is pretty slimy.”

“Do you use gloves?” She was perched on the edge of the stool, her hand hovering above the pumpkin.

“No. But I’m an expert.” He grinned when she snorted and plunged her hand into the guts. She brought out a handful of the pulp and seeds, putting it on the table and going right back in. Lucien was so focused on watching Elain clean out her pumpkin that he had forgotten that he had one to carve as well. Before he went to his he picked up a roasted seed, one that was actually cooled down, and offered it to her, unable to resist kissing the sugar from her lips.

Lucien pulled up a stool to the counter and he sat down, staring at his pumpkin for a moment to get an idea of what he wanted to carve. He picked up his knife and cut into it, removing the lid and making quick work of cleaning it. “This helps when you’ve gotten most of it out,” he slid a big spoon over to her, his heart once again fluttering at how beautiful she was. And she really seemed to be enjoying it!

“Don’t look at mine until I’m finished. I want it to be a surprise,” Elain smiled and she picked up her pen, carefully sketching her pumpkin’s face. She kept glancing at Lucien, his long hair braided back like hers, his face the picture of concentration. She loved that he was sharing the things he loved with her, that she was the one that saw this side to him. A ripple of affection went through their bond, making him raise his head to look at her.

His sensuous lips lifted in a smile. “Am I so dashing that it’s distracting, pea?” He howled in laughter when she threw a glob of pumpkin innards at him. “I’m trying to concentrate over here.” He had a number of knives and other tools around him whereas Elain had her one knife. 

She watched him chisel into the pumpkin, turning it as he transformed it into a sculpture. Realizing that she was only half finished with hers she turned back to it, carefully following the lines she had drawn. When she was done she stood and went to wash her hands, smiling when Lucien came up and pressed against her backside. He rinsed his hands and put some soap on them, rubbing them together with Elain’s and chuckling softly in her ear. Once their hands were dry they returned to their pumpkins, Elain gasping when she saw the masterpiece that Lucien created.

It was covered in vines and little leaves, intertwining and impossibly lifelike.

“Wow,” Elain breathed, taking a closer look. She gingerly ran her finger along the outside, so awestruck that she was oblivious to Lucien going to look at her pumpkin. She whipped around and blushed fiercely when he saw what she had carved, her heart fluttering when he grinned.

Two triangles for eyes, a triangle nose, and a big toothy grin.

“It’s perfect,” Lucien declared with mirth in his eyes. He picked up her pumpkin in one arm and grabbed his in the other. “Shall we find a place for them?”

Elain nodded and followed him back upstairs to their massive bedchambers. “What about there? I want to see them when we’re in bed.” She followed him to the dresser and the way he handled what she had created with such care made her a bit weak in the knees.

“Into bed with you,” Lucien smiled, wiping his hands on his pants. He turned his wrist and flames leapt to life on his fingers. He placed the flames into both pumpkins and went to draw the curtains, the last light of the evening extinguished from the room and replaced by the orange glow.

She clapped her hands and giggled when Lucien crawled into bed beside her, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her against him. “Will they stay lit up all night?”

“At least until I fall asleep. Do you like them?”

“I love them,” she mused, closing her eyes when he pressed a kiss to her neck. “And I love you.”

Lucien swallowed and he turned her face to him, covering her lips with his. He kissed her deeply, drawing soft moans from her throat. They took their time together, making love long into the night. And when Elain felt herself drifting off to sleep in Lucien’s arms, she looked to the dresser. The flames in the two pumpkins danced and flickered, making her smile as she closed her eyes and succumbed to sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed it!


End file.
